Kolkata, Nov 4 (IANS) The impact of Cyclone Murasu has weakened considerably, paving the way for dry weather across West Bengal from Thursday, the Regional Meteorological Centre in Kolkata said on Wednesday.
Eastern Region Director Habibur Rahaman Biswas said that after weakening, Cyclone Murasu has now turned into a depression. While the system did not have a direct impact on the state, it triggered rainfall in Kolkata and several south Bengal districts on Wednesday morning. However, from Thursday onwards, dry weather will prevail across the state. The weather will remain the same till Kali Puja (November 8).
Meteorologists, however, have indicated the possibility of light rainfall returning from November 9 before dry weather sets in again around November 12. A gradual drop in temperatures is also expected during this period, particularly in the districts where mercury levels are already lower than in Kolkata. Despite the anticipated cooling trend, the Met office has not yet signalled the onset of winter in the state.
North Bengal is also expected to experience dry weather, with no significant rainfall forecast in the region’s eight districts until Sunday.
Weather officials noted that the successive cyclonic systems this season have revived memories of 2013, when three cyclones, Helen, Lehar and Madi, formed over the Bay of Bengal within a span of weeks. The recent back-to-back influence of Cyclones Arnab and Murasu has drawn comparisons with that unusual period.
Cyclone ‘Murasu’, however, has caused immense damage to the coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh.
On Tuesday, Kolkata recorded a maximum temperature of 31.04 degrees Celsius, marginally above normal, while the minimum temperature stood at 26.04 degrees Celsius, over four degrees above the seasonal average. Relative humidity levels ranged between 62 and 96 per cent.
–IANS
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